Download Fusion Hinduism Buddhism Review

Review: Hinduism and Buddhism
World History/Napp
Identify whether the following statements are true or false.
1- Hindus believe in a world soul (Brahman) and an individual soul (atman). Atman is part
of Brahman.
True or False
2- Karma refers to the deeds and action of an individual. Karma from a past life
determines a person’s reincarnation. Good karma leads to a better reincarnation.
True or False
3- The caste system is a class system with social mobility. In a lifetime, a person can change
his caste.
True or False
4- Siddhartha Gautama was a homeless man who longed to be a king. He eventually rose
to power and was a great warrior.
True or False
5- When leaving the palace, Siddhartha Gautama saw four sights: an old man, a sick man,
a corpse and a religious man.
True or False
6- Hindus and Buddhists believe in reincarnation or that the soul is reborn.
True or False
7- Moksha is a Sanskrit term for reincarnation.
True or False
8- Upon his enlightenment, Siddhartha Gautama became the Buddha or the enlightened
one and came to believe in the Four Noble Truths or that life has suffering, desire causes
suffering, suffering can end, and the Eightfold Path as a means to ending suffering.
True or False
9- Buddhists accept the caste system. They believe that a person is born into his caste and
remains in his caste throughout his lifetime.
True or False
10- To Buddhists, dharma refers to the teachings of the Buddha. To Hindus, dharma
refers to the rules of caste.
True or False
11- Nirvana is a Buddhist term that refers to the end of suffering, the end of reincarnation.
It is a state of perfect understanding.
True or False
The terms Brahma, caste,
and moksha are most
closely associated with
the religion of
(1) Judaism
(2) Buddhism
(3) Hinduism
(4) Islam
In India, the Caste system
determined a person’s
occupation, personal
associations, and
marriage partner. It
(1) has promoted
social mobility
(2) has been a way of
life as well as an
element of religion
Questions:
 What are the four
castes of the caste
system?
________________
________________
________________
________________
 What determines a
person’s caste?
________________
Define the following terms:
Karma
Moksha
The word “Hindu” is derived from the name of River
Indus, which flows through northwestern India. In ancient
times the river was called the “Sindhu,” but the Persians
who migrated to India called the river “Hindu,” the land
“Hindustan” (Sanskrit, Hindi), and its inhabitants
“Hindus.” Hinduism is the dominant religion of India
today. Eighty percent of Indians are Hindus.
 What is the word “Hindu” derived from?
___________________________________________
 Who called the river “Hindu”?
___________________________________________
 According to the Persians, who were the Hindus?
___________________________________________
 What percentage of Indians are Hindus?
___________________________________________
The core of Hinduism is the belief in Brahman, the
universal life force or god that is part of all existence.
According to Hindus, one’s ignorance of the true nature of
the self as one with Brahman or god is what traps a
person in an endless cycle of death and reincarnation (the
rebirth of the soul). Therefore, the highest goal of
Hinduism is liberation (moksha) from the karmic cycle of
death and rebirth. At moksha, a person stops
reincarnating and realizes his true god self.
 What is Brahman?
___________________________________________
 Define reincarnation.
___________________________________________
 According to Hinduism, why do people
reincarnate?
___________________________________________
 What is the goal of the Hindu?
___________________________________________
The belief that one’s karma determines one’s birth in the
next life has supported the structure of the caste system in
India, made up of four castes that determine one's
occupation: Brahmins (priests), Kshatriyas (warriors),
Vaishyas (merchants) and Sudras (farmers). A person is
born into his caste and remains in his caste a lifetime. If a
person belongs to no caste, he is an outcaste. Outcastes or
untouchables face discrimination.
Brahmins
Caste System
Untouchables
The Buddhist religion
teaches that salvation
is earned by
(1) Following the Ten
Commandments
(2) Worshiping Allah
as the one true god
(3) Learning to give
up selfish desire
(4) Being baptized
and confirmed
The Eightfold Path,
the Four Noble
Truths, and the
concept of nirvana
are associated with
the religion of
(1) Islam
(2) Jainism
(3) Shinto
(4) Buddhism


Where is the
Mahabodhi
Temple
located?
____________
____________
What did
Brahma ask
Buddha to do?
____________
Siddhartha Gautama was born around the year 580 BCE in
the village of Lumbini in present-day Nepal. He was born into a
royal family, and his privileged life protected him from the
sufferings of life; sufferings such as sickness, age and death.
One day, after growing up, marrying and having a child,
Siddhartha went outside the royal enclosure where he lived.
When he went outside he saw, each for the first time, an old
man, a sick man, and a corpse. This greatly disturbed him, and
he learned that sickness, age, and death were the inevitable fate
of human beings - a fate no-one could avoid.
 Where and when was Siddhartha Gautama born?
________________________________________________
 Describe his early life.
________________________________________________
 What happened when he left the royal enclosure?
________________________________________________
 Why was Siddhartha disturbed?
________________________________________________
Siddhartha had also seen a monk and he decided this was a
sign that he should leave his protected royal life and live as a
homeless holy man. Siddhartha’s travels showed him much
more of the suffering of the world. He searched for a way to
escape the inevitability of death, old age and pain first by
studying with religious men. This didn’t provide him with an
answer.
 What did Siddhartha do after witnessing suffering?
________________________________________________
 What did Siddhartha search for?
________________________________________________
 Did he find his answer?
________________________________________________
One day, seated beneath the Bodhi tree (the tree of awakening)
Siddhartha became deeply absorbed in meditation, and
reflected on his experience of life, determined to penetrate its
truth. He finally achieved Enlightenment and became the
Buddha. The Mahabodhi Temple at the site of Buddha’s
enlightenment is now a pilgrimage site. Buddhist legend tells
that at first the Buddha was happy to dwell within this state,
but Brahma, king of the gods, asked, on behalf of the whole
world, that he should share his understanding with others.
 What happened to Buddha under the Bodhi tree?
________________________________________________
Define the following terms:
The Four Noble Truths
The Eightfold Path
Buddha
“Hinduism was not just a religion in ancient India. It was a way of life. It affected how
Indians lived, what they believed, and even the way they organized their society. Hinduism
taught that a well-organized society was divided into social classes. Europeans later called
this the caste system.
The Vedas describe four main social classes:
• Brahmins (priests and religious scholars)
• Kshatriyas (rulers and warriors)
• Vaishyas (herders and merchants)
• Shudras (servants)
According to the Vedas, each class, or Varna, had its own duties. For example, Brahmins
had a duty to study and teach the Vedas. Warriors had a duty to become skilled with
weapons. But the caste system meant that some people were much more favored than
others. Brahmins held the top place, while Shudras held the lowest. Over the centuries a
fifth class developed, called the untouchables. These were people whose jobs or ways of life
involved activities that Hindus considered lowly or “dirty,” such as handling garbage and
dead animals. Untouchables often had to live in their own villages or neighborhoods. They
could not enter many temples or attend most schools. Other Hindus avoided touching
them and, in many cases, even looking at them.
The caste system affected all aspects of people’s lives. Indians were born into a certain
caste, and they could not change it. In addition, people could only marry within their own
caste. The caste system is just one example of how Hinduism was woven into the fabric of
daily life in India. Even today, the highest caste in India is the Brahmins. They are
identified by the sacred thread worn over their shoulders.” ~ World History
- Why is the caste system a fixed social class system?
- How does the caste system favor some individuals and disfavor others?
- How does the caste system differ from the American class system?
- How were untouchables treated?
- What are the four Varnas?
1. The caste system in India was
characterized by
(1) toleration for various religious beliefs
(2) equality between men and women
(3) a lack of social mobility
(4) the right of people to choose their
occupations
2. Which belief system is most closely
associated with the terms Eightfold Path,
Four Noble Truths, and nirvana?
(1) Buddhism
(2) Christianity
(3) Judaism
(4) Shinto
3. “…He who, being of weak faculties
[abilities], develops the wisdom of the first
path with a dull insight is reborn seven
times at most; after seven rebirths in states
of bliss he will make an end of misery: he
who develops it with medium faculties and
insight is a roamer; after two or three
rebirths he will make an end of misery: he
who develops it with keen faculties and
insight takes root but once, only one human
birth will he pass through and make an end
of misery…” ~ Charles W. Eliot, ed., Sacred
Writings, Vol II, P.F. Collier & Son, 1910
4. Which belief system is described in this
passage?
(1) Buddhism
(2) Christianity
(3) Islam
(4) Confucianism
5. Which factor most influenced a person’s
social position in early Indian societies?
(1) education
(2) birth
(3) geographic location
(4) individual achievement
6. Which belief is most closely associated
with the teachings of Siddhartha Gautama
(Buddha)?
(1) People are born into a specific caste.
(2) Believers must follow the Ten
Commandments.
(3) Followers must fast during Ramadan.
(4) People can overcome their desires by
following the Eight-Fold Path.
7. Which belief is shared by Hindus and
Buddhists?
(1) Everyone should have the same social
status.
(2) People should pray five times a day.
(3) The soul can be reincarnated.
(4) Material wealth is a sign of the blessing
of the gods.
8. According to Buddhist principles,
believers can end personal suffering by
(1) doing good deeds
(2) eliminating selfish desires
(3) making pilgrimages to Mecca
(4) relying on divine help
9. The terms Brahma, dharma, and moksha
are most closely associated with which
religion?
(1) Judaism
(2) Islam
(3) Hinduism
(4) animism
10. The “four passing sights” did NOT
include
(1) a sick man
(2) a hungry child
(3) a dead man
(4) an old man
Reincarnation, Yoga, Untouchable, Indus, Ganges, Cow, Karma, Dharma, Brahman, Caste, Vedas
Nirvana, Cultural Diffusion, Buddha, Middle, Reincarnation, Siddhartha, Desire, Eight, Four, India, Hinduism